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A nice article I would like to share it with you all which I got through E-mail.

What if instead of Haraam we said Poisoned?



The conditions of Zabiha – the method of slaughter which makes a Halaal animal or bird permissible for consumption by a Muslim – are three:



1. That it should be slaughtered by a Muslim

2. That the name of AllahY or Bismillahi Allahu Akbar must be said as it is being slaughtered

3. That the Islamic method of slaughter i.e. the jugular and carotids are cut and it be allowed to bleed completely



I know that there are differences of opinion about the above conditions – some scholars allow one and say that the others are not important; and of course the opinion that simply saying Bismillah is sufficient and you can eat the meat of any Halaal animal – but the fact remains that if one is to err on the side of caution, then if one follows the above, which is the safest of all opinions, then one will be safe. Please see the attached Fatwa in the matter.



Eating meat slaughtered by People of the Book as long as they mention the name of AllahY is a condition that doesn’t exist anymore because the Jews and Christians don’t slaughter their animals by hand any longer and they certainly don’t say the name of AllahY when they do. So that doesn’t apply at all.



I want to ask you a simple question: What if it was a possibility of the meat being poisoned and you were not sure about it? What would you do? Would you take a chance? Or would you make sure?



Another question: How is it that the Brahmin (Hindu) eats no meat at all, all his life to please his god while the Muslim can’t miss meat in one meal to please AllahY? Maybe that is why they have the world and we have the chickens.



The fact of the matter is that it is perfectly possible for us to ensure that we eat Halaal meat by taking a little trouble but we are just too lazy and won’t do it. I lived in South America – Guyana and in the USA and Alhamdulillah always ate Halaal. Even though in Guyana it meant that every week I slaughtered 12 – 15 cattle to ensure that my own meat was Halaal. As a result the whole village where I lived, also ate Halaal for 5 years while I lived among them. In India where I live, we buy live chicken and slaughter them or have them slaughtered before us. Nothing difficult about that. You are paying for it and the seller is more than happy to oblige. It is all a matter of how important it is for you to eat Halaal. Or are you among those who will eat anything as long as it is dead? The question to ask is, ‘How much do I believe in AllahY and the Aakhira?’



Let us see what the Sahaba did in this matter. There is a famous story of Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq (RA) associated with his narration where he reported from Rasoolullahr that if a person eats Haraam and it becomes a part of his body then the fire of Jahannam is Wajib on him.



The story is that Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq (RA) came home one day and asked his servant if there was anything to eat. The servant gave him a bowl of milk and Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq (RA) drank it. The servant then said, ‘You always ask me about the source of anything that I give you to eat. But today you didn’t.’



Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq (RA) asked, ‘Why do you say that? What did you give me to eat?’

The man replied, ‘Before I became Muslim, I used to be a sorcerer. I had done some magic for a tribe which had not paid me for it. Today I was passing by them and they gave me this milk as the wages of my magic. I gave it to you and you drank it.’



Now for all my readymade Muftis – do you know more Fiqh or did Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq (RA)? So let us see what he did.



He started to induce vomiting and put his fingers down his throat and started to throw up. He went on until he started to bring up blood. His servant and others forced him to stop and said to him, ‘What on earth are you trying to do? You will kill yourself.’



He replied, ‘I have heard from my Habeeb that if a person eats Haraam and it becomes a part of his body then the fire of Jahannam is Wajib on him.’



Now we know from our rudimentary knowledge of Fiqh that Abu Bakr As-Siddeeq (RA) was not liable in this case as he ate without knowledge and that he ate what his servant gave him from his own possession and so forth. Then ask yourself why he felt that he had to vomit it out. That was because the Sahaba had Taqwa and so they didn’t need Fatwa.



The truth is that our little knowledge has become a liability for us. Instead of increasing the Taqwa of AllahY, Shaytaan plays games with our knowledge and shows us loopholes which are actually the loop of the noose around our neck.



Now let us look at what happens in a regular chicken factory and then you can decide if Godrej, Venky and other chickens which are all stamped Halaal by some masjid committee in Mumbai, Halaal or not. In a regular chicken factory ( I am speaking from personal observation), the chickens are loaded onto the conveyor into funnels which imprison their body and their head and neck sticks out of the open end of the funnel.



The conveyor passes first through a bath of water which is electrified which gives the chicken a shock and stuns it. At least that is what it is supposed to do. However since the chickens don’t undergo a cardiac health assessment before being loaded onto the conveyor those whose hearts can’t take the shock, die right there.



Then this conveyor with dead and stunned chickens comes to the gyratory blade which moves at great speed. At this point, any of these things happen:



1. Bismillahi Allahu Akbar is printed on the blade

2. There is a tape which is running saying Bismillahi Allahu Akbar over and over

3. There is a man or two men standing at this point saying Bismillahi Allahu Akbar



The chickens of course are moving at a pace far faster than it is possible for anyone to say Bismillahi Allahu Akbar over each of them which is the requirement. The factory I saw was a standard factory the likes of which are all over the world – it is all standard equipment – and processed 6 chickens per second. Try saying Bismillahi Allahu Akbar or even just Bismilla as fast as you can and you will see what I mean.



The gyratory blade simply slits the throat – not necessarily in the way that the Islamic slaughter requires and of course machines being what they are and conveyors being what they are it sometimes cuts a head completely off as well. This mixture of chickens then goes through the rest of the manufacturing cycle to come to your table with the stamp of Halaal on its package. And that is what you are eating.



Please also apply this principle of double checking to everything else you eat or drink and don’t simply go by the label. Today our plate and palate have both become international. Please ascertain the origin of the thing, not where it was packed. I have seen mango juice with a label, ‘Made in Kuwait.’ I am still looking for the mango tree in Kuwait which produced that mango to make that juice. Most mutton and beef originates in Brazil and Australia. Some in India and elsewhere. In Brazil and Australia the animal is stunned either by a mechanical device or an electric shock and then its throat is slit by a mechanical blade as it comes to it on the conveyor, in a supine position with its legs in the air. That comes to you with a Halaal stamp. In India they usually hand slaughter but there is no guarantee that it is done by Muslims or in the Islamic way. It is essential therefore to look for the origin and find out how it is slaughtered in that country. Simply looking at the label saying, ‘Made in Makkah’ for a chicken which came from Godrej’s factory in India doesn’t make it Halaal. And no, it is not the responsibility of the King of Saudi Arabia to ensure that you eat Halaal. It is your responsibility because it is your mouth which is eating it. Please apply these principles also to the various liquids you drink which are made with secret formulae and about which the only thing which can be said with certainty is that they are excellent toilet cleaners. What they do to your insides and Imaan is another story.



You can certainly trust a Halaal certifying organization which is funded by the Muslim community to certify products but which doesn’t take anything from the supplier for certifying their products.



When I say this, I am simply following the principle in the Shari’ah that the Muslim must not only do right but must also appear to do right. Meaning that he must not only not do wrong but he must also not do anything which can cast aspersions on his good character. For example if an Imam or a Mufti is seen coming out of a bar or a disco, it would be highly inappropriate even if he went there to give Da’awa to the alcoholics, druggies and fornicators. That is not the place to give Da’awa and you would certainly look askance at the Mufti and take all his future Fatawa with a tablespoon of Garam Masala.



This principle applies to its highest degree on organizations like Halaal certifying bodies, Ulama Boards of Islamic Banks and so on which the entire Ummah relies on. Therefore if anyone serving on such certifying bodies takes remuneration from them and if their certification directly or indirectly benefits themselves or their organizations then one must naturally view them and their certification with suspicion. Garam Masala. But if they are sponsored by the Muslim community – which in fact they must – then they can be believed and their recommendations and certifications can be accepted InshaAllah.



My dear Brothers and Sisters, I am not prohibiting you from eating chicken or lamb or beef or whatever Allah has made Halaal. But I am asking you to make sure that what you are eating is in fact Halaal. Now what is so bad about that, eh!



And if you can’t make sure and have no means of being certain, then simply follow the order of Rasoolullah (SAS): Leave the doubtful for that which is not doubtful.



Leave the meat and chickens and stick to vegetables, fish, eggs and milk. That is good both for your health and your Imaan.



And Allah knows best.



والسّلام



Yawar Baig